(Homesteading.news) As long as there have been farms and homesteading, there have been farm kids that have had chores to do. Kids can and should be a part of raising crops and livestock, not only because they are handy but because doing so teaches them critical life skills like responsibility and coping with all sorts of things like bad weather, the death of an animal, working when tired and so forth. Not to mention all the cool things they will learn how to do.
Clearly, however, not every child is able to or should be expected to perform certain chores and tasks, simply because they either lack the physical or mental ability to get them done. There are also risks.
The U.S. Department of Labor says that 33,000 children a year incur farm-related injuries in the United States, and unfortunately more than 100 of those result in death. Of those deaths, 23 percent involve machinery, 19 percent involve motor vehicles and ATVs, and 16 percent occur from drowning, Agriculture.com reported, citing government figures.
Now, when you consider that more than 1 million younger Americans (under age 20) work and live on U.S. farms, 33,000 injuries and 100 or so deaths seems like a small number. But of course, if it’s your child that gets injured or killed, those statistics won’t matter to you.
There will be some 10-year-olds who may physically be able to drive a tractor, but they probably won’t have the cognitive ability to spot a looming dangerous situation or react well in an emergency. Research shows that kids aged 10 – 13 are the most clumsy, easily distracted and are more than too willing to take unnecessary, unsafe risks.
One way to mitigate risks is to discuss safety with your children. Talk to them about the kind of injuries they face working on a farm. Let them know that, for example, in a livestock pen it is easy even for a larger, tame animal to cause an injury to them. Let them know they should pay particular attention when they are working around dangerous areas like silos, grain bins, farm ponds, manure pits and barn hay-drop openings.
“No amount of training can replace proper supervision. Be patient with your children and remember you may need to go over the rules for a specific chore several times,” notes Agriculture.com. “As kids get older, supervision is still important. Check in regularly to make sure they’re following all safety rules.”
Here are some age groups and tasks that most commonly cause injuries:
Birth to age 4: Fall from heights, ingest poison, kicked or trampled by animals, run over by tractor, drowning.
Reduce risk by never allowing equipment rides, put up fence around ponds and manure pits, lock chemicals, fence in play area, supervise constantly. Really, there are no age-appropriate tasks for children this age.
Ages 5 to 9: Fall from machinery, auger or machinery entanglement, grain suffocation, trampled or kicked by animal.
You can mitigate risk of injury by setting hard-and-fast rules, discussing safe behavior, supervising chores, keeping them away from augers and machinery, as well as grain bins. Some age-appropriate chores include collecting eggs, watering plants, helping to feed pets and small livestock, and working with smaller hand tools under supervision.
Ages 10 to 13: Death and injuries include machinery entanglement, hearing loss, fall from equipment, head and spine injury from motorcycle or ATV accidents.
Make sure to require helmets on ATV equipment and don’t allow extra riders, make sure to set parameters and rules, educate your kids about farm hazards and how to prevent them, and plan gradual increases in responsibilities as your kids prove themselves.
Appropriate chores include use of hand tools (rakes, shovels, etc.), limited power tools with supervision, push-mower/rider mower with supervision, and assist in handling animals.
Ages 13 to 16: Main causes of death and injury include hearing loss, head and spine injury from motorcycle or ATV accidents, machinery rollover/roadway accident, and PTO entanglement.
Base chores on size and maturity, provide rules and educate your kids. Also, require them to get some ATV training and protective gear, and if available at your kids’ school, have them participate in 4-H or FFA safety projects.
Kids between these ages should be able to operate and maintain equipment under supervision, feed animals, and operate a tractor with implements at about age 14, after a training course.
Ages 16 to 18: Potential causes of injury and death include respiratory illness, hearing loss, muscle/bone injuries, tractor rollover, machinery entanglements, and accidents caused by drugs/alcohol.
Mitigate these with strict rules governing use of any drugs or consumption of alcohol, provide rewards for accepting adult responsibilities and work together with your kids on new tasks.
Once taught and initially under supervision, older children can operate a tractor and other machinery, including self-propelled machinery, an auger, elevators and just about anything else on your homestead. They should also be very comfortable in handling and feeding livestock, as well as fixing fence and other small repairs. By now they will know most of what they need to know to raise crops as well, and can do just about any job related to growing food there is.
It’s all about making sure not to give our kids too much responsibility before they are ready for it, in both mind and body.
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